Brighter Horizons
by bubblecloudz
Summary: So much potential, so little time - boy, was the wizarding world going to be surprised when the boy-who-lived plays the game his own way. Smart!Harry, possibly-grey!Harry, slight (ok very) AU - [hello salty kids, at your insistence here's a note: ABANDONED and not up for adoption]
1. Chapter 1

It was a stormy night.

Ok, that's a lie – it was a mildly drizzly evening in Surrey, England and all the suburb-dwellers were complaining to whoever would listen – that is to say, no-one but their family members. In Harrys case, he was forced to hear his uncles muttering through as rather thin cupboard door. Harry sighed and wriggled in his makeshift bed (a thin crib with the rails removed) to try and ease the tension in his back. Tension gained from hiding from his cousin's gang on the way home from the library - Harry scowled. Surely the fun of 'Harry Hunting' wore off after the first 50 times? Harry had begun to hate the feeling powerless, and tried to stay out of the other boys way as much as possible. He hid in the local library most evenings, unless he had chores to complete for the Dursleys. And he always had chores to complete for the Dursleys.

Harry wouldn't go as far as to say he was his relatives slave, he just washed, cooked and cleaned and got no credit for it. As much as he resented his mistreatment, he didn't hate the Dursleys – they still gave him food, clean(ish) clothes and didn't physically abuse him – the occasional ear boxing and frying pan swung his way didn't count. Besides, they were his family. He could never fully hate them, and they couldn't never really hurt him.

Despite this, Harry tended to keep certain things from his family. His mental prowess wasn't reflected in his report cards (tests were remarkably easy to fail on purpose), his cooking skills weren't shown in his cooking (as if he'd waste his knowledge on his ungrateful family – they wouldn't know the difference between cinnamon and nutmeg!) or his 'Powers'. But then again, no-one ever asked about him, so couldn't tell anyone anway.

Harry wasn't dim witted by any means, he was in fact extremely intelligent. He soaked up knowledge like a sponge, and by age 9 he felt he had a decent grasp of general knowledge.

And by decent grasp, he was able to perform and think as well as some university students in most academic subjects. Of course there were subjects he dislike, but he would study them as much as he could anyway. _You never know,_ he'd think, _might come in useful one day._

Harry also was talented in other areas: he could cook like as well as a master, and was fairly musically gifted. The Dursleys, of course, didn't want him to feel encouraged to pursue either hobbies, and had to make do with whatever time the school allocated for students to practice their 'creative' interests,

At any rate, Harry wasn't able to put any of his knowledge into practice that often.

His day was always the same for as long as he could remember: wake up, make breakfast, go to school, avoid attention, hide in the library, go home, clean, cook, and sleep. This was only ever interrupted by weekend stays at batty Ms Figgs, who seemed intent on making him a cat-person, or Marge 'the Marshmallow' visiting. Harry would have gone mad from this monotony, not for his books, and his 'Powers'.

Harry had discovered his 'Powers' accidently when he had flown onto the school roof when he was six. After being retrieved, and being severely scolded by the teachers, he had hidden himself in the park and meditated for what felt like hours. He had felt warmth grown in his chest, and when he had looked down, he was levitating a few inches off the ground. He had promptly crashed down. After 3 years or practice, he could now do a number of things; most importantly make himself unnoticeable. It only worked, he had found, if he had time to concentrate so he couldn't use it when he was being 'hunted'. But he could cause things to topple over, or make things seem to appear, change his hair length (discovered after his Aunt had tried to give him a terrible haircut) or even, if he concentrated really hard, change how things were. He had tried to look up an explanation for his abilities, but he couldn't find any answers. His logical mind didn't want to accept magic as the answer, so he stopped searching and just practiced what he could.

When he turned 10 (and received a broken hanger to hang his one coat up) Harry found he could talk to animals. Well, not talk, as much get impressions from certain animals. He felt like he could hold entire conversations with cats, dogs, birds and fish. He was wary around rodents, but could actually speak to reptiles! Harry had realised this with no small amount of excitement, but was soon punished for it – in his rarely felt joy, he had lost control of his 'Powers' and caused Dudley to fall into a snake enclosure. Not one of his finest moments. His uncle hadn't let out of his cupboard for any reason other than chores and bathroom breaks. Harry suffered in silence, not only because he felt he deserved it ( _A foolish slip,_ he chided himself _I must always maintain control. I'm not some child,_ he would think to himself, completely ignoring his age) but also because he felt a change was coming. Despite being a more pessimistic child than most, he still felt hope as his 11th birthday drew near.

He could sense change. He just didn't know what it would be.

* * *

 **AN: So! First (hopefully) multi-chapted story, even if it does end up a little cliched - at least I tried? Right?**

 **Weeeeelll if anyone wants to leave a review (Even if you just say 'Cool' or 'sucks' or 'give up') I'll appriciate it! Any critisism is needed!**

 **See ya later ;)**


	2. Chapter 2

Harry woke with a groan, feeling the tension in his back immediately after waking. His old, hardened mattress wasn't doing wonders for his bruised body. Days like this, when he woke to another day of monotony and bruises and no thanks, he would consider just running away. He had his 'Powers' to rely on, and he thought he was intelligent enough to get by. But, these feelings would pass, as he justified his continued stay at the Dursleys home. He had a direct access to clean water, decent food, and clothes. He didn't even have to see them all that often. _Besides, no-one would really care about him unless he could offer them something,_ he'd think, _and the situation I have right now is durable._

Harry, being an emotionally shunned 10 year old boy, didn't quite grasp the concept of love. He wouldn't, not for a long time, and thus stayed in an unhappy home when he could have run away, or reported his family for neglect. He didn't want to draw attention to himself, and even though he knew logically he wouldn't be hated for his 'Powers' a little part of him, the small, childish part, couldn't let go of that fear.

 _Enough sad thoughts_ harry angrily thought as slowly clambered out of his cupboard. He had breakfast to make.

* * *

Harry was allowed to sit with his family for once, as both his Aunt and Uncle were distracted with making Dudley happy. Harry sat quietly at the edge of the table, his mind on other matters ( _Which is better? String theory or loop theory?)_ when Dudley hit Harry with a whip. Harry blinked. That was new.

'Hey, freak! Can't you hear? Get the post!' Dudley yelled, spittle flying everywhere. Harry sighed. If it meant escaping his overweight cousin, he'd gladly do any chore. Harry got down, and made his way to the door, and gathered the letters in his hand. He quickly flicked through the days post – any information, even if he wasn't going to act on it, was interesting. Harrys rapid hands stopped suddenly when he noticed a rather odd letter – it seemed to be written on parchment. Even odder, it was addressed to him – Harry James Potter. The boy had frozen in shock. As far as he was aware, only his Aunt and Uncle knew his middle name – not even the school had it on their registers. Apparently, his aunt had hated his dad.

'BOY! What's taking so long?!' Vernon's voice made harry jump in surprise.

'Coming!' Harry called back, quickly stuffing the letter under his shirt. It could be another secret to keep from his relatives, as Harry had the strange feeling that his Aunt and Uncle wouldn't like him getting attention when Dudley did not.

* * *

Harry collapsed under a willow tree (one he'd begun to affectional think of as his) in the park. He slowly withdrew the letter from the morning from under his shirt, where it had been kept for the last 4 hours. As it was summer, Harry was free to work all day for his Aunt without interruption. However, as he had worked so hard she had unusually given him the rest of the day off – and he was keen to use the time to examine this mysterious letter. Harry held it in his hands, slowly running a finger over the wax seal. It seemed to be a coat of arms, but he couldn't quite make out the shape. Harry shrugged. _Carpe diem,_ he thought as he opened the envelope. His heart stuttered as he skimmed the letter.

 _HOGWARTS SCHOOL_ _of_ _WITCHCRAFT_ _and_ _WIZARDRY_

Headmaster: Albus Dumbledore (Order of Merlin, First Class, Grnad Sorc. Chief Worlock, sumpreme Mugwump, International Confed. of Wizards)

Dear Mr Potter,

We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment.

Term begins on 1 September. We await your owl by no later than 31 July.

Yours sincerely,

 _Minerva McGonagall_

 _Deputy Headmistress_

Harry finished rereading the piece of parchment for the fifth time and looked at the second page.

HOGWARTS SCHOOL _of_ WITCHCRAFT _and_ WIZARDRY

UNIFORM

First-year students will require:

Three sets of plain work robes (black)

One plain pointed hat (black) for day wear

One pair of protective gloves (dragon hide or similar)

One winter cloak (black, with silver fastenings)

Please note that all pupil's clothes should carry name tags.

COURSE BOOKS

All students should have a copy of each of the following:

 _The Standard Book of Spells (Grade 1)_ by Miranda Goshawk

 _A History of Magic_ _by Bathilda Bagshot_

 _Magical Theory by Adalbert Waffling_

 _A Beginner's Guide to Transfiguration by Emeric Switch_

 _One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi_ _by Phyllida Spore_

 _Magical Drafts and Potions_ _by Arsenius Jigger_

 _Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them_ _by Newt Scamander_

 _The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self-Protection_ _by Quentin Trimble_

OTHER EQUIPMENT

1 wand

1 cauldron (pewter, standard size 2)

1 set glass or crystal phials

1 telescope

1 set brass scales

Students may also bring, if they desire, an owl OR a cat OR a toad.

PARENTS ARE REMINDED THAT FIRST YEARS ARE NOT ALLOWED THEIR OWN BROOMSTICK

Yours sincerely,

 _Minerva McGonagall_

 _Deputy Headmistress_

Harry blinked. Then blinked again, a slow grin starting to uncurl on his face. Magic. He had Magic, not 'Powers'. He was a wizard! He wasn't alone! In rare, childlike glee, Harry let out a giant whoop and started to run around, a slight breeze picking up and rustling his untidy hair. Harry laughed, breathless, and glanced down at the paper in his hand once again. He didn't understand how he was meant to get any of his equipment, or how he was even meant to convince his Aunt to let him go, but he was sure he could manage. For the first time, he had something that he wanted to achieve, something he desperately longed for. It felt like his chest was on fire with excitement, and with uncontrolled glee he gathered his letter and sprinted off to the library: he had a book on owl behaviour to find.

* * *

Later that night, a lone figure sneaked out of number 4 Privet Drive. Harry was surprised at how easy it was to break out of his cupboard and walk to the park. _If I had know, I might have left that place earlier,_ Harry thought to himself. A slight hoot broke him out of his musings. Harry glanced up, and saw a tawny owl sitting on a low branch near him. Harry grinned again, stretching muscles that hadn't seen use for what felt like years. 'Hey girl,' Harry said softly, slowly edging towards the bird. It watched him, almost amusedly. 'You wanna take my letter? Do you understand me?' Harry was close enough for him to hold out his reply and have it be close enough for the owl to grab. If Harry didn't know owls couldn't do so, he would have sworn that the tawny bird rolled it's eyes at him before taking his note in its beak and flying off. Harry shook his head. _Well, a few days ago I knew magic wasn't real. Maybe owls can roll their eyes_ harry thought as he made his way back to the house. He smiled to himself along the way. The way things were going, his life was about to take a definite twist – for the better.

* * *

 **AN: So! I hope this all flows, and doesn't seem too rushed. I wanted to get this scene, and a couple of others to come, out of the way before the plot really starts to pick up.**

 **To the guest reviewer (Sonsky) on the last chapter: Thanks for your input, I really apprciate it. You did raise a good point, something I tried to answer without getting ahead of myself - basically, Harry is crazy!smart, and knows (logically) he could have a much better situation, but he doesn't want his powers/magic to be discovered, doesn't trust easily, and basically can't be bothered. He knows he could have it worse (not a healthy way to think I'm aware) and is quite apathetic about it.**

 **This will all be explored in depth later! It's is part of the plot! Please be patient, and if you liked it please review!**


	3. Chapter 3

The next few days were torture for Harry. He kept glancing at the sky, as if an owl would suddenly swoop down and deliver him his key to unlock a new world, a place of so many impossible opportunities that he couldn't wait to seize.

The Dursleys had noticed this new excitement, with no amount of happiness. Harry had taken to avoiding his relatives at all costs, and spent all his time either at the library or in the park. He did his chores at twice the speed, something his Aunt noticed but couldn't quite scold. Harry read as much as he could that remaining week; he needed to prepare as much as he possibly could. His Powers ( _Magic, not silly 'powers'_ _it's called magic_ ) were acting up, turning lights on and off randomly, levitating books and messing with the weather and plants. Even the neighbourhood strays were effected by his presence, sidling up to him just to be petted.

* * *

The night before Harry's eleventh birthday, Harry approached his Aunt and Uncle after dinner. They glanced at him as he edged into the sitting room.

'What do you want, boy?' Vernon said in a growl, his eyes barley leaving the TV screen. Harry coughed slightly, and drew his back up straight.

'I just wanted to tell you I'll be leaving for a boarding school until next summer. I've been offered an unconditional place, after taking my 11 plus.' Harry decided to ignore the fact he didn't actually have money or a place to stay for the remaining month, or that he didn't actually know where to go from there on out – he couldn't handle sitting still any longer. Petunia looked sharply at him.

'Boarding school? What boarding school? When did you sit the 11 plus? Do we have to pay?' His Aunt didn't even pause for a breath in between questions, and Harry stared at her until she repeated them more slowly.

'Well, a letter came… to school. It's called Hog-hurm-place, I sat the test withing school and it's being funded by the government.' Harry tried to make his lies as believable as possible, but due to his lack of interaction with people he didn't know how to lie to people faces. In writing, sure he could lie like the best of them, but face to face? No can do.

Petunia narrowed her eyes further ( _How is that even possible? Aren't they just going to shrink into her head?_ ) when Harry said 'Hoghurm Place'.

'Hoghurm place?' she sounded out, slowly. Harry prayed to whatever deity listening that she didn't question the name. 'Well, it's a strange offer but –'

'Paid for by the government! You don't even have to see me until next June!' Harry practically shouted at her in desperation. Both Vernon and Petunia glared at him, but Harry didn't falter. He just wanted to leave, damn it all. Eventually, Vernon turned back to the TV.

'Don't see why not.' He grunted. 'Not like he's of any use aounnd here.' Harry glowered at the man – _I do everything around here, you miserable-_

'I suppose,' Petunia interrupted Harry's internal tirade 'If you leave tonight, it wouldn't be so bad-'

'Thanks Aunt Petunia!' Harry said loudly, walking back to his cupboard. He didn't really have anything to pack, but he still pulled out his school backpack and stuffed his frayed sheets inside. If the school didn't offer any money for orphans, he might have to rough it. Harry really didn't want to, but he consoled himself with the fact his magic ( _Magic I have magic!_ ) could keep him warm and relatively clean. He'd never tried to warm himself or clean himself, but he was confident he could handle the challenge. Harry moved into the kitchen quietly, as to not disturb his Aunt and Uncle. He grabbed a few tinned beans, a few slices of bread and some fruit. It went straight into his bag, which had been padde by his sheets and the few extra tops he was taking. Harry then snuck upstairs, thanking the stars Dudley had decided to stay at Piers that night. He went into Petunia and Vernon's room first, glancing around and swiping £50 in cash to pay for whatever fares that might come up. Harry figured it was a small price to pay to not see him for 11 months. He then went into Dudley's spare room, where all his broken or unused toys went. He rummaged around, and settled on taking an unused smartphone ( _I can't believe Dudders threw this away just because it was the wrong_ make) and a pair of walkie-talkies, thrown in the room because they 'weren't cool.' Harry scoffed as he pocketed the items, thinking he could make a fair bit of money out of them. He went back downstairs, pulled on his overcoat and left without another look.

He _may_ have glanced back, once, but no-one oudl ever be able to prove it.

* * *

Harry made a stop at the library, as it opened late, and said quick goodbye to Mrs Priest, who teared up when he explained why.

'Oh, you clever duck, you' she muttered grabbing him and hugging him tight. Harry was a little bemused, both by the display of affection and the nickname ( _Duck? How long has she been calling me that for?_ ). He promised to visit in the next year and set off for the train station. It was quite a walk away, but Harry was sure he could manage.

* * *

Harry arrived at Victoria Station an hour and a half later with a sigh. It had been quite an accomplishment to get there, considering he hadn't been to a train station before. Once getting into the relative heart of London, he wondered off into the still busy streets. He walked down the roads, finding his way to what seemed like the main shopping area. Looking around in wonder at the brightly lit shops and blocked roads. Harry felt both awe and disappointed. It was big and fancy and all, but seemed a little… underwhelimg. He wanted intrigue, excitement, not all the best bits shoved in his face. He turned down a dark alley ( _way to go Potter, this will be how you die I can see it now: Young boy found dead in alley, seemingly carrying all his possessions_ ) when a something grabbed him from the shadows.

'Ar-aight there lad?' A learing face, cast in shadows, peered out to Harry, who blinked.

'I'm quite well, thanks. Do you know of any place I could sell a smart phone or walkie talkies?' Harry asked politely, unsure what else to do in this scenario. He felt a little like Alice after falling down the rabbit hole, a stranger in a land so close to home. The shadowed man grinned at him.

'Ya lookin for a pawn shop then? Ok then lad, I'll direct cha…' The man trailed off, peering at Harry again who simply looked back in curiosity. The man shook his head lsightly before giving directions to a nearby shop. Harry thanked him and headed off to the shop.

* * *

'Well, that was tedious.' Harry exclaimed exiting the shop. Despite being £35 richer, he felt a little cheated out of his money. 'I could have gotten £50 for the phone alone,' he muttered to himself angrily as he walked down the path. 'Bloomin cheapskates, ruining this economy…' Harry trailed off as he stopped in front of a pub on a corner. He glanced around. No one else seemed to have soticed it, and his magic felt like it was pulling him in. Harry looked around again, then shrugged. What harm could it do?

* * *

 _A lot, apparently,_ Harry thought as he stumbled out of (what seemed to be) a magical brothel, _an awful lot._ Harry coughed a few times as he straightened himself and looked around. He appeared to be in a dark alley, with a small light at the end. Harry grinned to himself. This was more like it.

As he moved closer, cautiously ( _I don't want another stranger to suddenly grab me fromt he shadows_ ) he realised that a door was being illuminated. It turned out that it was a side entrance to an actual pub this time, one that was mostly empty despite it being 'pub hours'. Harry walked up to the counter, running a hand through his messy hair.

'Hullo,' he smiled at the crooked old bartender. 'Could you direct me to where I can get school supplies for Hogwarts?' the bartender stopped his cleaning and squited at Harry – then reeled back.

'Blimey! You're 'arry bleedin' Potter!' the man gasped, drawing the attention of the two other patrons. Harry blinked.

'Technically, I'm Harry James Potter; I don't plan on being injured any time soon. You would be?' Harry asked, drawing more bewildered looks. He sighed internally. He had been counting on more intelligent magical kind, but if everyone acted like this then he would be doing a lot f sighing, blinking and eye-rolling. Oh joy.

'I'm Tom, the bar man.' Tom said, quite redundantly, Harry thought. 'I run this place, The Leaky Cauldron, yeah? Ya want Diagon right?' he asked the impatient boy.

'I'm not sure what that is,' Harry answered testily. 'if you could just explain how to get Hogwarts supplies and inform me of places to stay, such as an inn, I would be grateful.' Let it not be said that Harry ever was impolite. Tom blinked ( _Ha! I'm not the only one who does that!)_ and grinned at Harry's grumpy expression.

'Aright lad, I'll tell ya. Diagon Alley is whatcha afta, an' ya should proll' head to Gringots first, right lad? An' if it's a inn ya after, come back 'ere when ya done. Hang on, I'll show ya how to get through to the alley first' Tom disappeared from the bar momentarily and beckoned Harry to follow him through a corridor. At the end was a brick wall. Harry, remembering a recent report on old men and young boys, shifted his weight and was about to come up with an excuse to leave when Tom pulled out a thin stick. 'Ok, watch carefully!' He said, before touching several bricks in a pattern. Harry's mouth fell open as the bricks started to moved of their own accord into an arch, and before him appeared a twisting, cobbled alley. Tom grinned again in the flickering light at the expression on Harry's face.

'Welcome to Diagon Alley.'

* * *

 **AN: 3 chapters in as many days, boy am I cranking it out here. Don't worry, I've got a hellava lot planned for this so I (hopefully) won't stop updating regularly for a while. Or until exams hit.**

 **Side note: I've moved all events up a couple of years - Harry starts Hogwarts in 2004. What can I say, I like modern technology. Also, on Harry's character: He /is/ intelligent, but hasn't had a chance to interact with people that much. This is what we'll see more of, and less of him acting like a know-it-all.**

 **Thanks to everyone who's favourited/followed, it means a lot to me! If you leave a review, I'm more inspired to write a new chapter! (who am I kidding I love writing anyway it just makes me happy)**


	4. Chapter 4

Harry stared gobsmacked down the twisting alley. The scene could have come out of a Victorian drama, complete with cobbled uneven streets and flickering lights. It took a moment for Harry to realise that the lights were actually suspended orbs, giving off a warm orange light. Shops of all kinds filled the streets, with very few alleys leading off to the sides. Most of the shops were closed, and several market stalls were covered in drapes to prevent stealing. A little down the street was an impressive white marble building, that appeared to still be open. Tom, noticing Harrys wondering eyes, coughed.

'Well, lad, I'll be 'ere once ya done. Most of the shops are shut right now, but Ollivander's and Flourish an' Blotts are still open and so's Gringotts. Head there first' Tom motioned to the giant building ahead of them. 'An' they'll 'elp ya out more than I can.' Tom winked then headed back inside the safety of his pub. Harry swallowed, and readjusted his bag. He took a deep breath, trying to contain his nerves ( _Is it nerves? Or excitement? Or both?_ ) and set off, trying not to trip in the

As Harry neared the building, he could make out short figures standing guard in front of the two bronze entrance doors. As he drew closer still, Harry realised they weren't human – the short figures were wrinkled creatures, with pointed ears and long, thin hands and dark beady eyes that followed Harry's movements. Harry tried to not let his surprise show; he didn't want to offend any-being out of his ignorance. He glanced between the creatures, trying to figure out how to proceed. Eventually, he cleared his throat.

'Nice night, isn't it?' Harry tried to sound cheerful and got two identical death glares. Harry blinked and his smile faded slightly. _Maybe they're just tired,_ Harry thought as he pushed through the bronze doors. He stepped through into a smaller hall, and was greeted by smaller, silver doors that had words carved into them. Harry drew closer to read the message, trying to not be off-put by the second set of guards. Harry read the ( _terrifying)_ inscription twice, before steeling himself and entered the building. This time, he entered a room similar to a school assembly hall, with tellers running along the side. Most were empty, but a few nearer the end of the hall were manned by the strange creatures. Seeing so many close together, Harry began to see distinctions between them: some had pointier ears, some had smaller faces and so on. Harry guessed, based on his limited knowledge, that they could be dwarves or goblins, or something along those lines. He might as well ask.

'Hello!' Harry said brightly to one of the free creatures. 'I'm new here. What sort of creature are you?' This, Harry realised, was a little rude, and the creature in question clearly thought so.

'We are of course goblins, boy, did your mother teach you no manners?' the goblin practically snarled at him.

'No, since she's dead. Anyway, I was told this is where to head to first, and I'm guessing from the inscription outside this is some sort of bank?' Harry trailed off, seeing the goblins disgruntled look.

'I see. This is indeed a bank, the best in the world in fact. We are the only magical bank that can claim to have never had a break in.' The goblin explained, with a slight grin. Harry blinked. It was very disturbing.

'I.. see. How long has this bank been running exactly?' Harry asked. The goblin's grin gew bigger, showing more pointed teeth.

'Just under a millennia.' Harry blinked again. That was impressive.

'Well, I certainly would feel secure investing money here!' Harry said in an upbeat manner to try to make up for his earlier… faux pas. The goblin remained staring at him. Harry cleared his throat. 'Well, I need Hogwarts supplies but I have no money. How would I go about getting money.' The goblin sneered at him.

'We do not concern ourselves with wizarding affairs, boy, but a witch should have explained this all to you anyway. Why are you wasting valuable Gingotts time?' The gobiln demanded. Harry opned his mouth in annoyance, then closed it again. He hadn't been visited by any witch. Perhaps they had opened an account in his name, assumed he'd know what to do?

'Well, I haven't had anything explained to me so far' Harry said to the goblin's extremely annoyed look, 'but perhaps you have an account under my name? I'm Harry Potter, who would you be?' Harry added on, seeing the goblins confused expression. However Harry was soon the one to become confused when the goblins face went pale, then became very anxious.

'Follow me, Heir Potter' the goblin commanded, and marched off to the left. Harry blinked ( _Did he call me 'hair?'_ ) and followed, ignoring the stares he was getting from the few other visitors. He was lead down a long corridor, with several doors without name tags, but Harry could still feel some sort of Power( _Magic I can feel some sort of Magic_ ) emanating from it. He felt a little wary as the goblin lead him further and further down the corridors, until he was shown into a room that held only a simple desk and two sets of plain chairs. 'Please wait here momentarily, Heir Potter.' The goblin said without emotion, and turned to leave. 'And my name is Griphook.' The goblin closed the door without another word, leaving Harry alone in the strange stone room. _Well, that could have gone worse_ Harry thought.

* * *

Harry was kept waiting for 10 minutes by his best guess, when another goblin enetered. Harry rose as the door opened, and a taller, older goblin walked in holding a large folder. 'Sit down, Heir Potter.' The goblin commanded as he strode behind the desk and sat down. Harry did as he was told and watched the goblin with a curious expression. The goblin organized his papers and cleared his thoat.

'Heir Potter, my name is Urxluk, and I am the head of all your accounts. Firstly, why haven't we heard from you or your guardian for the past 10 years?' The goblin, Urxluk, asked Harry, who simply blinked in response.

'Um. Well, I've been living with my Aunt and Uncle since I was 1, after my parents died in a car crash. I don't think they know about… well magic. They think I've gone to a special boarding school for the next eleven months, and I've never received any mail. I only found out about this, er 'magical' community a week or so ago.' Harry said slowly, trying to be as concise as possible. Urxluk's nostrils flared.

'Do not lie, Heir Potter. I can tell you've had some training, your aura gives you away.' He said with a steely voice. Harry frowned.

'What would I gain by lying? I'm telling you, this is the first I've heard of magic! I used to call it 'Powers' until I got my letter! I don't know how I ended up here, I just walked around until I found this place! I even had to ask what creatures you all are, ask Griphook!' Harry said angirily. He hated being called a liar, he always tried to be honest, unless the Dursleys were involved. Then he lied like a pro. Urxluck stared at Harry for a moment before relaxing in his chair and smiling.

'I see Heir Potter. Well, to correct some beliefs first and foremost: your parents did not die in a car crash, they were powerful wizards, and were killed by a Dark Lord named … Voldemort.' Here Urxluk paused, as if to see what reaction Harry would give to the name, but his mind was still reeling from being told his parents weren't who he thought they were. 'There was a war. The Dark Lord had risen to power, and was killing mercilessly. He and his followers, the Death Eaters, had driven the wizarding population to madness. Your parents, along with their school friends, helped lead a resistance group called the Order or the Phoenix. The fabled Order was lead by a powerful man named Dumbledore.' Again, Urxluk paused but Harry continued to look down at the floor, deep in thought.

'No-one knows why exactly, but the Dark Lord targeted your family directly. All we know, is that on Samhain after your first birthday, he tried to murder your entire family. He killed your parents, but somehow he couldn't kill you. He disappeared shortly after, and the wizarding world at large now hail you as the one who killed him. Yes,' Urxluk grinned at Harry's horrified expression, 'they even call you the Boy-Who-Lived.' Harry held up his hand for a pause as he digested all this new information. His head was reeling. _My parents were magic too? There was a war? What?_

'Why is it so special that I didn't die? And why was there a war? Why did my parents fight? Why didn't they run away? Who's Dumbledore, and this Voldemort?' Harry asked, his voice growing desperate. Urxluk raised a brow.

'They tell the public the war was between good and evil, between dark magic and light magic. That wasn't the case. Voldemort, an incredibly powerful wizard, wanted to eradicate muggleborns – witches and wizards who haven't magical parents-' Urxluk added to answer Harry's un-spoken question, 'and was willing to kill anyone who got in his way. Your parents fought, to the best of our knowledge, because they felt it was right. Why they didn't run, I don't know they weren't inclined to tell me. Dumbledore is the headmaster of Hogwarts, and defeated a different Dark Lord, Gellert Grindewald, a few decades prior and is hailed as 'Leader of the Light', and he advocates muggleborn interaction.' Urxluk waited a moment for Harry to take this all in.

'The most extraordinary part of you living is that Voldemort used one of the three Unforgivable Curses, the three supposedly most dangerous curses that will land you in Azkaban. The one he was partial to was the killing curse, one that only the most willful and powerful can cast. None, in all of magical history, of human or creature origin, has survived this curse. None, but you.' Urxluk leveled a stare at shaking Harry who had gone very white. A bell chimed in the distance.

 _Happy eleventh birthday, Harry,_ was his last crazed thought before he passed out.

* * *

Harry woke to the crakling of a fire. He lay still for a moment, caught in that wonderful peace found between waking and sleep, when a dry voice called out.

'Awake then, Heir Potter?' Urxluk's amused voice made Harry sit up, and prompty fall off the bed. He fell with an oomph. Harry groaned as he heard Urxluk chuckle. 'I've taken the liberty to ordering breakfast. We still have much to discuss.' Harry stood up, swaying slightly, and collapsed into the waiting chair. Harry looked around the room.

'You've redecorated,' Harry remarked, glancing at the small pieces of art hung up, and the window that he was sure hadn't been there last night. Urxluk smiled slightly.

'I thought it might make you feel more comfortable, all things considering.' Harry flushed, embarrassed to have passed out the night before. In his defence, he'd had a long day with minimal food and taken a huge emotional blow. Harry notice the food on the table, and felt his mouth drop open in shock. There was more food than he'd ever seen in once place; baskets of bread, tubs of jam, platters filled with sliced meats. Urxluk watched him look over the food hungrily, before clearing his throat. 'We didn't know what to get for you, so I ordered a continental breakfast. I hope you find something to satisfy your taste.'

'No, no this is fine, more than fine.' Harry said faintly, reaching for some bread. He nibbled at it dumbly, as he went over the information from the night before. He wiped his mouth as subtly as he could and sat up straighter. 'So, Mister Urxluk, could you explain some more things for me? How… is it that I survived when no-one else has? Why does everyone know about it? Why haven't I had a magical introduction, and why did you think I have… had an introduction, that is.' Urxluk pursed his already thin lips at this.

'That's part of the mystery, Heir Potter. No-one is sure how you survived, many even claim you dueled the Dark Lord. I apologise, but I don't believe that rumour,' Urxluk continued despite Harry's slightly manic grin, 'The wiazrding world has a fairly small population, of only 800,000 wizards and witches scattered throughout England, Scotland, Wales and all of Ireland. News travels fast; gossip even faster. With little else to do in those dark and desperate times, most were prepared to pass on the next bit of information as soon as they humanely could, as it that piece of information could mean life or death. I don't wish to alarm you, Heir Potter, but that was life.' Urxluk finished eying Harry's pale face. He seemed to be gripping the chair's arms rest for all his worth. 'By all rights, you should have had a magical education. Your father was a pureblood, a wizard with two magical parents from a long line of wizards. Your mother was a powerful muggleborn witch, who would have certainly made arrangements with her friends to look after you in the event anything should have happened to her. Your guardian, Professor Dumbledore, should have definitely given you some introduction, and I assumed you have had some training as you aura has developed to the stage of a well practiced second year student.' Urxluk answered, and waited for Harry to have processed all the information and finish his fourth slice of bread and jam.

'Before you ask anymore question, I think it would be wise to call for a break. It's now 4 in the morn, and any more business can wait till more suitable hours. I would suggest you head to an inn, and buy all your school books. I have withdrawn several galleons from your vaults to pay for your day. I have also selected some books to loan you,' Urxluk motioned to a stack of book near the book, 'that should help explain your situation, recent events, and the wizarding world at large. I have other matters to attend to, so pleas emake an appointment with a teller as you leave. Good day, Heir Potter.' Urxluk looked down and began to write on some paper. Harry stared at him for a second before slowly getting up and picking up the bag of book. His head swimming, Harry walked down the long corridor and exited into the main room. There were slightly more people than before, who all glanced at him before turning back to their own matters. Harry staggered to the goblin who he had spoken to before, Griphook, and cleared his throat.

'Um I've been told, I mean I need another appointment with Mister Urxluk later on today.' Harry said faintly. Griphook glanced at him, and began flicking through a large book.

'He is free today at 22:00 hours, would that suffice for an hour long appointment?' Griphook said, in what he must have thought was a kind manner. It wasn't. Harry nodded and muttered his thanks before leaving the bank. He somehow managed to make his way back to the Leaky Cauldron without falling over, and stumbled up to the bar. Tom looked up at him in shock.

' 'Arry! I was expectin' ya back ages ago, whats… what wrong?' Tom asked kindly, but Harry just shook his head.

'I need a room, please Tom.' Tom frowned and sucked on his bottom lip. He finally nodded.

'Aright, lad, I'll give ya a room. Ya can pay me back tomorrow, or should I say later today!' tom chuckled to himself as he made his way up some stairs and down another crooked corridor. He unlocked a door at the far end. ' 'Ere ya are, 'Arry', this'll do for ya won't it?' Tom asked as Harry walked inside. Harry just nodded, and as soon as Tom closed the door, he collapsed onto the soft bed, letting out a slight groan, then fell deeply asleep. After all, it had been a really long day.

* * *

 **AN: It seems I add an additional 1000 words every chapter I write. once I get the hang of this, chapters should all be about 2000 words in length - but I didn't write anything yesterday, so I felt bad! I hope you enjoed this rather slow chapter, I know it's kinda boring. But it's needed. TRUST ME!**

 **If there are any grammatical or spelling mistakes, please please tell me I'm not good at spotting them!**

 **Hopefully, shopping and a bit more expo will happen in the next chapter. And for the record, Dumbles won't be _evil,_ but we'll first see him through the eyes of the goblins who hate all wizards. Soooo yeah. Don't worry. **

**Ciao**


	5. Chapter 5

The streets were bustling with witches and wizards, buying and selling various knick-knacks along the street. Charmed necklaces, self-made spells, potions that bubbled and burped all could be found on the stalls that wedged themselves in between shop windows – literally wedged themselves, the tables would move and squeeze into whatever gaps they could. Indistinct chatter joined the cacophony of sounds, and laughter trickled through every now and then. Harry watched all of this happen from the safety of his ice cream, and enjoyed the view. This was exactly what he had hoped against hope for, and he was going to enjoy the ridiculousness of it all, while he could.

Another big change was headed his way. He had a bad feeling in his gut. His gut was rarely wrong.

* * *

By early evening, Harry had wondered up and down the alley several times. He hadn't gone into any of the shops, aside from Florean Fortescue's place, but walked along it until his legs and back felt on fire. He had discovered that all the side alleys led to establishments similar to the Leaky Cauldron, all differing in quality. Apparently, according to the Florean, the Cauldron was the original entrance to the alley when it was first created, and owned by the same family since then. Many regarded it high esteem, despite the overall shabbiness of the place. Harry, personally, quite liked the charming inn but decided after his week was up he would find someone else to stay. He did want to get a good feel for this new world.

He had of course read (see: skimmed) all the books he had been given and tried to take some notes. Essentially, family name, money and magic were important aspects to the 'Old Ways' and the new waves of muggle-borns were erasing the traditions. This had lead to a great deal of resentment, which had lead to Voldemort being able to capitalise on that anger to wreak havoc. Harry's family, despite being an old, traditional family had joined the fight against the maniac and his followers. The books didn't say, but for whatever reason Voldemort had directly attacked Harry's entire family, leaving him to be the last true Potter. He was briefly upset by this, before reminding himself he had never met them and never would so there was no point feeling sad about ( _still hurts, though_ ).

Harry had learnt quite a bit from the book aimed at muggleborns, as it explained a little of the wizarding world customs. From what he'd gathered, despite the superiority complex most magical folk seemed to have, they were just as prejudiced as the muggle world. Although racism wasn't as prominent, it was still there. Homosexuality wasn't frowned upon, it was just uncommon. However, there was a huge stigma attached to magical creatures and muggleborns. The muggleborn thing, Harry could understand somewhat – he didn't approve, but he understood the majorities reluctance to accept change. However, what he didn't get was the hatred of magical creatures – they all had magic! Wasn't that a uniting front? Harry had decided not to dwell on it until he had more information, and ordered food from Tom for his room. As he munched his way through his bangers and mash, he continued to take notes in the plain boom provided by Urxluk. Harry hoped that the goblin could tell him more about the world he had been thrust into, and give him some more money.

He desperately needed new clothes.

* * *

At quarter to 10, Harry found himself seated in the office that he presumed to be Urxluk's. The stack of books he had borrowed rested on the already filled table, and towered over Harry. He sat patiently, observing the now fully furnished room and steeling his nerves for what would no doubt be another informative evening. Five minutes passed before Urxluk entered his head down in his papers. He muttered to himself as he sat down, and all was silent for a few moments, aside from the crackling fire. Harry waited to be addressed, but when Urxluk made no move to speak Harry coughed. Urxluk glanced up in surprise.

'Heir Potter! I apologise, I didn't see you there.' Harry grinned in reply and pulled put his notebook.

'Not a problem Mister Urxluk, really. So hey, I went over the books you lent me, and I have a few notes. Could you explain a few things?' Harry slid the page over to the gobin, who frowned slightly.

'A few day practising your handwriting would do you some good, Heir Potter. Let me see now…' Urxluk trailed off as he tried to decipher Harry's chicken scratch. The boy in question shifted in his seat in embarrassment, and busied himself by rereading one of the books on wizarding law. When he was done, Urxluk coughed.

'Well, Heir Potter. It seems you have a better grasp than you had before, so we can truly begin. I'll be blunt. You're the only remaining Heir of a long, prestigious line – not to mention the last of a family that has done business with our bank since it was founded. It is for these reasons the bank has handed your accounts to me to supervise, as I am the most competent at dealing with wizards. If you were to stumble into the world with no knowledge, you'd not only shame your Family Name, but the bank as well. So, here we go.' Urxluk paused for a breath. 'You have inherited several accounts, due to Heirless half-blood families naming you their successor in their last Wills. Yes,' Urxluk bared his teeth in a grin at Harry's shocked expression, 'being hailed as the worlds savious has it's perks. I will go over all your assets and properties another time. For now, duties: you hold 12 seats on the Wizengamot and 14 votes. I would ask you to read into what that entails another day, as I cannot inform you any further. All I can say is that when the Supreme Noble and Supreme Ancient House of Pendragon, the oldest Family in record, sat in Wizengamot, they help 14 seats and 16 votes. Other duties as the Last Heir will include managing your money and producing your own Heirs for each house you've been Named for. Luckily, I doubt you've been Named for more than three of four houses. Yes?' Urxluk's beady eyes seemed to glitter with amusment.

'I have… to 'produce' at least 4 children?!' Harry said quite faintly. He had expected shocks, but as the books he'd been given were vague he hadn't known what would come up. When Urxluk nodded, Harry continued. 'Right, ok, um what does 'Named' mean? And why are some houses noble or ancient?' Urxluk frowned slightly.

'Surely that was answered in the books?' Harry flushed and made a negative noise. Urxluk's lips twitched. 'I see Heir Potter. Firstly, being Named for a House is when the last Head names you to carry on the line. This was introduced about 60 years ago, when the percentage of squib children increased. Heads were finding that their squib children were more capable of handling the family business, despite their other children being magical. Naming was introduced so that a squid could be given the title of Heir, but removed from the Family Line. So if you had been born a squid, you would have had the title Heir Potter Removed. The child who is Named is tasked with continuing the Family Line and Family Magics, by producing a child. The one who is Named holds the title of Line Heir. One cannot be a Line Heir for several Lines. Your Magical will rebel against it. Does this make sense?' Urxluk waited for Harry to stop scribbling everything down and nod at the goblin to continue. 'Secondly, you must place an intonation on 'House'. It shows respect.' Harry pulled a face but nodded.

'A House must be founded by a witch or wizard. They must be able to create a 'base', of sorts – usually a house or manor. They also must be able to create spells for a Family Magic to be created. Finally, they must have 2 children or the Family Line isn't secure. As this knowledge becomes more obscure, the levels of New Families drops, and Magic becomes strained. A Family gains the status of Noble by being continued for contributing to the world in some way. Most families gain this status fairly quickly, through commercialism, spell-crafting or teaching. The status Ancient is gained by existing for 500 years, and Most Ancient by continuing for over 750. There are currently 20 Ancient houses, and only 5 Most Ancient. They are: the House of Black, the House of Heath, the House of Longbottom, the House of Potter and the House of Malfoy. To gain the title of Most Noble, a Family member must be on the winning side of a war. A Family could be go from New to Most Noble if the Head times it right in this fashion. Any questions so far?' Harry looked thoughtfully over the notes he'd taken.

'Right, so first off – how do you know when you've gained a title? And what were the titles of that, uh… Pendragon House? Oh! And also, you said I had been Named for several Houses, but then you said you can't be Named for several Houses… how does that even make sense?' Urxluk looked pleased to have been listened to so thoroughly and sat up straighter.

'When you create a Family, you must create a Family Grimoire. It will contain your Family Magics and track your Line. Each Family creates theirs differently, and hides it in a different manner. In fact, most don't acknowledge each other's Grimoire, so intimate it is to the Family Head. Goblins only know of their existence due to arrogant wizards boasting about them in our company, thinking we weren't listening. When your Family achieves a new status, the title of the Grimoire will change to match. The Head cannot change it. Furthermore, the Grimoire tracks who is part of the Line and who would make the best Head. In this way, even if a Head strikes a member out in words, they might not be able to strike them from the Grimoire if they are the best candidate for the Family, such as what has happened recently with the Most Noble and Most Ancient House of Black.' Urxluk paused again, but Harry didn't notice. Urxluk continued, eyeing the boy carefully.

'The House of Pendragon… the Supreme Noble and Supreme Ancient House. Only one other Family of the same calibre has existed in all of the worlds history, and that was the Peverell Family that faded out a few centuries ago. To gain those titles, the Family must win a war within itself, and exist for over 1000 years. Once you gain those titles, your Family will all experience a huge Magical burst. For these reasons, most Families don't continue past 400 or 500 years, as the internal fights tear them apart. During the Medieval times, Families would pop up and die out within the same year. The House of Pendragon, however, was the Family that began the true separation of wizards from muggles. For this, they had to overcome a great internal battle that ended when their Head, Arthur, died. Their advisor, a great wizarding mind, retreated from the world, allowing those within the house who wanted the separation to convince all the others. The House somehow survived every war and attempt made on them after this by remaining loyal to each other, and it is rumoured that members even taught the Hogwart founders. But I stray from the topic. The House remained until the late 19th century, when a Dark Witch, a follower of Morgana, managed to kill them all. No-one knew who they Named for Line Heir, so the Family Name was forgotten.'

Urxluk paued to take a sip from his glass of water. Harry sat back in chair, still deep in thought. This was all far more complicated than he thought it would be. Urxluk, as if reading his mind, chuckled. 'It gets even more complicated. Whilst it's true that one cannot be Named for several Lines, it is only because the Family Magic wouldn't accept them. It became easier to trust the Grimoire to guide the Head to Name a suitable Line Heir. In your case, many Named you but Magic rejected their claims, which was lucky for their Family Heirs who all wanted to personally carry the line on. However, there are some Lines you've been accepted into. Obviously you were Named for the House of Potter, but also the House of Black and the House of Lupin. Unfortunately, that's all the goblins have been able to find out. To see if you've been accepted into another Lines we will have to do a blood test, which will also tell us your exact account status. It won't hurt, I only need a drop.'

Urxluk ended aburptly and started to clear his sat blankly, going over everything he had heard, as Urxluk straightened out a roll of parchment on the desk. Harry watched, not taking anything in. Urxluk began to draw small runes onto the parchement, reffering back to one of the papers he had brought in with him. A few minutes passed. A clock chimed 11 in the distance. A goblin, one Harry had yet to meet, opened the dory softly and peered in. Urxluk waved a hand at it and the goblin left. Finally, Urxluk leant back satisfied. 'Well, Heir Potter, if you please.' Harry jumped slightly when he saw the razor sharp, curved blade Urxluk was holding. Harry tentatively held out his hand, and Urxluk made a small cut in his finger. Goblin and wizard watched as the ruby red blook droplets fell to the parchment, only for a maze of black lines shoot across the page. Urxluk looked shocked. The ink slowed, and finally settled. Both sat in silence for a minute, taking the results in.

'Well.' Harry said as brightly as he could. 'I didn't expect that.'

* * *

 **AN: CLIFFHANGER!**

 **Sorry to not be updating everyday, but it's chirstmas which means so much homework - yay!**

 **Urxluk literally never shuts up(sorry), and Harry is always surprised. At least for now. Things will change, one day!**

 **I'll try to update tomorrow, with 2 chapters so I won't feel bad for not writing anything until the 27th.**

 **Until then, ciao darlings ;)**


	6. Chapter 6

Black ink had spiraled over the parchment, an inky river that showed no sign of stopping. As the lines continued to expand, and Urxluk's eyes grew wide, Harry's heart beat faster and faster. At points, the ink would turn to blue, to red, to yellow and to green. When it finally stopped, both wizard and goblin sat in silence for a moment before Harry looked up and met Urxluk's gaze across the table.

'Well,' Harry said in a voice as bright as he could, 'that was unexpected.'

'To say the least, Heir Potter,' Urxluk said in a very faint, quiet voice. 'Or should I address you as Heir Potter-Black-Peverell- Pendragon- -Gryffindor-Hufflepuff?' Harry's mind went blank, and spoke without thinking.

'To be honest, Mister Urxluk, all these titles are a bit of a mouthful. When we have these meeting could you just call me Harry?' Urxluk looked stunned, but nodded. He gazed at the page, as if trying to understand it all. Harry waited for it to be explained – it was written in various languages, and he was happy to have it explained to him. The fire looked like it was about to go out, so Harry concentrated on it. Soon, it was roaring again. Pleased, Harry turned him attention back to Urxluk who was staring at him in open astonishment. 'What?' Harry said defensively. _Surely seeing magic being used is a common occurrence?_ Harry thought, as Urxluk just shook in head.

'I would get the odd one again,' Urxluk muttered under his breath. He shooked his head and sighed. 'Well Hei- I mean, Harry, it seems you defied all understandable logic. It seems your mother, Lady Evens, had set up something similar to a New Family, but only took in magical creatures who were hurt. That in itself is bewildering, but when she died the magical creatures all … disappeared.' Harry frowned.

'I'm not sure where this is going, but how many creatures were there?' Harry asked.

'There were five in total. A Kneazle, a Grimm, a …a nundu, a phoenix and …somehow… an umbrus draconis, more commonly known as an Umdisc.' As Urxluk read out the list, the level of disbelief rose. Before Harry could question it, Urxluk had moved on. 'All very rare, they seem to have formed a Familiar link to the House of Potter – that is to say, you. None of these would have been your True Familiar if they had survived, but there is no record here of their continued existence.'

Harry barely had time to process this before Urxluk continued his speech. 'All of this was highlighted in green. Now, as I had said, you've been Named for the house of Lupin, the House of Black and the House of Potter. You've also been Named for the Noble House of MacMillan, and the Most Noble and Ancient House of Greengrass. I shall put you in contact will a trustworthy solicitor who can be your liason with those Houses. All this was highlighted in yellow. Now, to the more interesting aspects of the test. A red branch shows where you'll inherit money from. It seems no less than 29 Houses, old and new, have listed you to claim some of their money. All has been placed into a separate account from your main Family vault, as it was addressed to you personally. There are only 4 claims to be carried out, as the Head who made it has yet to die.' Harry nodded dumbly, unable to give any other response to the onslaught of information he was being given.

'The black and blue lines are the most fascinating. Black lines show your true relatives of blood, but blue marks magic you've inherited. This charm will stop at the last relative of magical birth, so on your maternal side one would expect the blank branch to stop at Lilly Evens. However, it seems she descended from a squib cast from the House of Hufflepuff – making you a descendent too. Whilst the Most Noble and Most Ancient House of Smith have long claimed they were the last remaining descendents, the blue branches on this sheet prove that Lady Hufflepuff's Magic has accepted you as its Heir. Furthermore, on your Paternal side, it seems that you are a direct descendent of Godric Gryffindor, and his Magic has accepted you as such. But, even more importantly, it seems that the Gryffindor has cast out of the Peverell family, only for their descendents to marry into a New Family, the House of Potter. Furthermore, the Pendragon House seems to have been founded after one of the Peverell descendents had an argument – Mister Potter, by simply existing you've managed to completely torn up the collective understanding of wizarding history!' Urxluk's voice had slowly risen in both excitement and shock as he'd gone on, and was now staring at Harry with his mouth open. Harry blinked, then shrugged.

'Opps?' He offered with a slight smile. Urxluk groaned into his hands as a clock chimed midnight.

* * *

After collapsing onto his bed in the Cauldron, Harry stared at the ceiling. It seemed he had inherited several 'Family Magics', all of which would take _years_ to learn, and was expected to _produce_ at least _9_ children! Not only that, but he would have to learn to control so much power… all he had wanted to do was run a few experiments and fly a broom! This was a lot more than he had bargained for. Harry lazily levitated a few object around the room as he thought. Whilst his social situation was unexpected, having Magic did make up for it. He sighed gustily and looked at the clock. It was now 15 minutes until 1 in the morning. He laughed.

'Nearly witching,' Harry chuckled to himself quietly. He turned over in his bed. Urxluk had given him his Hogwarts allowance ('The set amount Hogwarts gives all muggleborns to help them,' Urxluk had explained. 'I think it will do for now, until we can properly assess your accounts and decided what to do.') Harry groaned at the memory. He was so _over_ the whole money business. He just wanted to read and eat ice cream. Harry drifted off into an uneasy sleep.

* * *

The next day was met with an extremely grumpy Harry. Tom had greeted the boy quite cheerfully at 7 o'clock, but Harry just scowled at him until Tom left. Harry had ordered a slice of toast before he set off. He kept his head down, but he needn't bothered. The Monday morning crowd was practically nonexistent, only a few elderly ladies were walking about. Harry sighed to himself, and looked over his shopping list. He'd start with a trunk and bag to carry it all in. Trunk shopping could take all that long... _could it?_

 _..._

 _Apparently it could_ , was the conclusion Harry came to 45 minutes later as he walked out _Golding's Gear_ with one limp bag hung over his shoulder. His attention had immediately been drawn to the many different types of trunks you could buy. Although the muggleborn shop assistant had tried to sell him several styles, Harry had deflected all attempts and struck up a conversation about how different the muggle and magic worlds were, then the convenience of charms, then the different types of bags, which lead to Harry getting a 10% discount on a bag that had 5 different charms to prevent rips, stains, or theft – and even had two charms that could make that bag feel as light as a feather and shrink as small as a key! Harry beamed as he handed the 3 Galleons over – he really loved magic. He decided to get a trunk later on, when he had more money to spend.

Harry then spent the next few hours in each store; always spending more than he expected to. Instead of the beginners pack of brewing equipments and ingredients, he had brought the intermediate set – aimed at those taking an apprenticeship. He also bought an excessive amount of stationary, and even added in a few muggle items (such as two notebooks and a few biro pens) before exiting. He had gone to _Madam Malkin's_ to get his uniform, and asked for a few charms to be placed on them so he didn't have to buy new sets every time he grew or they broke. By lunchtime, all Harry was missing were his school books, an owl, and a wand. He decided he could forgo lunch and entered _Eeylops Owl Emporium_ , a shop that sold owls. Harry moved leisurely through the shop, gently petting a few owls. Tawny, black, spotted, big small, there was an infinite amount of owls. Harry felt a little overwhelmed as he drew nearer to the back of the shop - _How am I supposed to chose an owl out of all these?!_ A loud hoot drew Harry out of his thoughts. At the back, on a perch, was the tawny owl that had taken his reply to Hogwarts, and a regal looking snow white owl. Both seemed to be watching him. Harry drew closer to the white owl. 'Hey girl,' he said softly, reaching up to stroke her head. 'Aren't you gorgeous?' the owl practically purred under his touch, and nuzzled his hand. Harry grinned. Owls really were the avian form of cats.

10 minutes later, Harry was rushing back to his room, a giant bird cage in hand. His next meeting with Urxluk was at 8 that evening, and he wanted to get his owl settled before then.

* * *

Harry spent the rest of his afternoon with his owl. He hadn't had a chance to name it, so he had taken to calling her 'Girl.' The owl had rolled it's eyes at him ( _what is it with birds rolling their eyes at me?_ ) but allowed him to pet her. Harry had tried to talk to her, but was just getting amused glances and feelings of happiness in return. Eventually Harry had given up and continued to practise his magic until the evening rolled around.

At 8 o'clock sharp, Harry once again found himself in Urxluk's office. The goblin was sitting there already, with a plate of roast steak in front of him.

'Please, Harry, sit. I imagine you'll be quite hungry as the meeting goes on, so I've ordered food for you again.' Harry grinned in thanks and began to eat. Urxluk had put a pair of thin glasses on for this meeting, and pushed them up and he shuffled a few papers.

'Well, I've organised all your main accounts. Before I show them to you, I'll remind you: 1 Galleon is equal to £150 British pounds in weight, but only £10 if you exchange them. 1 Sickle is equivalent to £1.70, and 1 knut is equal to 10 pence.' Harry frowned at the seemingly random numbers, but nodded in confirmation. 'Then I'll show you your accounts. You have two vaults with the House of Potter – the Family Vault and your trust fund. Currently, you've been taking money out of your trust fund. For the House of Black, you have access to only the Family Vault – it feeds into 3 other vaults but you can't access them or cut them off – only limit them for the time being. The House of Lupin only has 1 account, their Family Vault. You cannot make transactions directly, you must ask the Head. For the House of Peverell – actually, it'll be easier to show you the rest. I'm sure you can handle it.' Urxluk said in a snide voice, but he seemed to be grinning so Harry smiled in return. _He has a weird sense of humour,_ Harry thought as he pulled the paper closer.

 **ALL VAULTS ACCESSIBLE TO HARRY JAMES POTTER-BLACK-PEVERELL-PENDRAGON-GRYFFINDOR**

-HOUSE OF POTTER-

FAMILY VAULT: 5,000,000,000G

TRUST FUND: 500,000G

PROPERTIES: Godric Hollow Number7 (derelict), Potter Villa, France, Potter Manor, Kent

BUSINESS&SHARES: 18% share of the Daily Prophet, co-owns _Charms for All_ series with House of Greengrass.

ALLIENCES: Longbottom, Bones, MacMillan, Clearwater

-HOUSE OF BLACK-

FAMILY VAULT: 18,276,000,000G

FEEDS INTO THE PERSONAL ACCOUNTS OF NARCISSA MALFOY-BLACK, BELLATRIX LESTRANGE-BLACK AND ANDROMEDA TONKS

PROPERTIES: Grimauld Place, London, Cliffs Peak, Plymouth, Starlit Hideaway, Hawaii

BUSINESS: Own:- _Potioneers, The CurseBreakers_ and _Charmers and Co._. 15% share in the Daily Prophet

ALLIENCES: LeStrange, Greengrass, Malfoy, Gaunt, Knott, Zabini

-HOUSE OF PEVERELL-

FAMILY VAULT: 200,000,000,002G

FEEDS INTO THE FAMILY VAULT OF GAUNT

PROPERTIES: The Hole, Dublin, Peverell Castle [Location Unknown]

ALLIENCES: Pendragon, Potter

-HOUSE OF PENDRAGON-

FAMILY VAULT: 199,999,999,997G, 13K

FEEDS INTO THE PERSONAL VAULT OF DUMBLEDORE ( _Illegal_ , _unauthorised by head_ )

PROPERTIES: Camelot Castle, [Location Unknown], Arthur's Retreat [Location Unknown]

ALLIENCES: Peverell, Gryffindor

-HOUSE OF GRYFFINDOR-

FAMILY VAULT: 200,000,000,004G

FEEDS INTO THE HOUSE OF WEASLEY

PROPERTIES: West Wing of Hogwarts, Scotland, Godric's Hollow [Unknown]

ALLIENCES: Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, Slytherin, Pendragon, Peverell

-HOUSE OF HUFFLEPUFF-

FAMILY VAULT:10,000,000,000G

FEEDS INTO FAMILY VAULT OF SMITH

PROPERTIES: North Wing, Gardens and Greenhouses of Hogwarts, Hufflepuff Gardens, Italy.

ALLIENCES: Gryffindor, Slytherin, Ravenclaw, Smith

-LINE HEIR ALLOWENCES-

HOUSE OF MaCMILLAN: 5000G per year after Majority is reached

HOUSE OF LUPIN: 100G per year after Majority is reached

HOUSE OF GREENGRASS: 5250G per year after Majority is reached

'Well,' Harry said hysterically, slumping back in his chair. 'That should cover all the books I need!' Urxluk's mouth twitched again.

In the distance, in several homes all under great amounts of wards and protection, many Grimoires suddenly glowed.

The first block had been broken.

* * *

 **AN: And with that lovely cliffhanger, I wo't update until the new year ;)**

 **PLEASE REVIEW! They make my day brighter. desireejones99 - you da real MVP**

 **Merry Christmas, darlings.**


	7. Chapter 7

Harry strolled through the park, liking his ice cream cone. The sun beat down, unusually warm for mid-August. The many city families were taking advantage of the heat wave and the green fields were filled with picnicking families. Harry watched them with longing, his eyes hidden behind a pair of shades. He knew that he had had every right to a childhood like that, one where he was cared for and loved and cherished. He could have had a family, one that would play with him and not hate him. Harry carried on his walk, trying to distance himself from those thoughts. _Grow a pair, Harry,_ he thought to himself dejectedly, _what's done is done. Just enjoy the weather._

So he did.

The last week had been hectic by any standard. The sheer information overload, coupled with the knowledge of his huge bank accounts and various duties had been too much for Harry to take in. Luckily, Urxluk had been kind enough to put Harry in touch with a solicitor, a Mister Jeremy Greengrass. Despite his squib status, Jeremy was apparently the go-to-guy for half-bloods that had been Named for prominent families. It helped that he was a cousin to one of the lines Harry had been Named for. He'd been sorting through all the alliances, properties and businesses, because whilst Harry was smart and probably capable, he was only 11. He had better things to do. Like:

 _BANG_ an explosion shook the grey room, dust and paper covered with scrawling notes flew everywhere. Hedwig gave a very indignant squawk and eyed Harry angrily who only looked sheepishly back at her. 'Sorry, girl, that didn't go well did it?' his grin didn't quite match his words, and the recently christened Hedwig just rolled her eyes at the mess. Harry ran a hand through his hair as her surveyed the damage. 'I guess trying to charm the air into a ball was too much, huh?' he muttered under his breath. Hedwig simply hooted, as if to agree with her human. Harry stretched, and waved a hand lazily. All his notes whizzed back into order, or into some redeemable chaos. He had been practicing using his magic without a wand; Urxluk had asked him to wait on buying a wand. The boy strolled over to his window. The inn he was staying at, The Leaning Wand, was wedged between a used bookshop and an apothecary, both owned by the same couple. His room was modest, and lighter than the one at the Cauldron. His windows overlooked on one side the busy Alley, and on the other a park that the inn lead out to. Harry hadn't quite got his head around the way magic seemed to distort distances, but he decided there were some things better left unknown. It added to the mystery.

* * *

It was a breathless Harry that stumbled into Urxluk's office, a room the other goblins had dubbed 'The Boy-Lord's room'. Waiting for him were Jeremy and Urxluk, both looking amused.

'Alright there Harry?' Jeremy grinned. He was fairly young, and Harry found himself enjoying the older man's company. Harry nodded, still out of breath.

'Sorry, Hedwig wouldn't let me leave!' Harry finally got out, to which the others shuddered. Harry's familiar, whilst beautiful, was not a bird you wanted to cross – something all three had found out that short week.

'To business, Lo- Harry,' Urxluk started, ignoring Harry's drawn out groan. 'We simply must get this done with. As you know, you've been Named as a Line Heir only for 3 houses, and the True Heir of six other houses. You'll need to take the rings for the six houses, today, please.' Urxluk pushed a small box towards Harry who glared at the goblin.

'Do I have to? This is so needlessly complicated!' Harry whined, his mind still on the charms he'd been reading about. Jeremy stifled a giggle and Urxluk glared at them both.

'Yes you have to. We know you've somehow managed to shatter all understanding of our shared history, but you still need to respect traditions!' Urxluk's beady eyes seemed to glow in anger, so Harry quickly shut up and reached for the bow.

'Alright, keep your hair on…' he mumbled under his breath. Harry opened the box. Inside were six rings, with space left for a seventh. Harry looked quizzically at the goblin, who just motioned for Harry to continue. He shrugged and took a ring out. He held it up to a light. The thick gold band was dotted with miniscule red jewels, and adorned with one ruby. A hippogriff-like creature was etched onto the gem, and it looked like it was watching Harry. Urxluk cleared his throat.

'Ah, that would be the ring of Pendragon. It would be wise to leave that for now.' The usually stoic goblin seemed uncomfortable, and Harry replaced it for a thin, silver ring. A black jewel, with purple stones surrounding it was the main feature but Harry could somehow sense a strange magic emanating from the ring. He slipped it onto his right index finger, and suddenly felt like his body was being compressed into a tube. He couldn't breathe; an oppressive force was holding him tight. It left as soon as it came, and the ring adjusted to his finger. Harry breathed out in relief and looked at Urxluk's grinning face in annoyance.

'You knew that would happen, didn't you?' Harry asked, but got a feral grin in response. Jeremy was laughing silently, mouthing 'Classic Blacks' as he clutched his stomach. Harry scowled at the pair of them and reached for the next ring. A gold and silver ring, with a lion engraved onto the woven metal. Harry slipped it on a little more tentatively, but only felt a comforting breeze flow through him. He took no notice of the two watching him and added another two rings: a gold band dotted with rubies and a bronze band with a small green jewel Harry couldn't place. Both rings seemed to accept him easily, almost happily.

If Harry hadn't decided to accept all changes with open arms, he'd have gone crazy from thinking the rings were sentient.

The final two rings looked ominously up at him from the box. The golden ring of the Pendragon family went on first, which made Harry felt like a wet rag being squeezed dry when he tried to put it on. However, just when he couldn't bear it any longer, the ring settled and fit comfortably on his right thumb. The ring left in the box was an oddity, even by Harry's new standards. A dark black band, with a only thin, white band in the middle. It suddenly reminded Harry of a clear moonlit night, the feeling of being alone with only the shadows for company. It reminded Harry of his cupboard. He put it on.

At once Harry felt his magic expand, and for a brief second could see all the magic in the room, interwoven strands of light resonating with each other and him. Harry blinked, his ears buzzing.

'Well,' Jeremy broke the silence. 'If that's what he's like when he gets six rings, how'll you fare when you get your last?' Harry looked up at Jeremy in alarm.

'Last? You don't mean –' Harry exclaimed, looking down at the box. 'You don't mean I have another house? Why didn't you say!' Uxluk shifted uncomfortably.

'We… don't know for certain. I asked for your rings tp be brought to me from the vaults, and this box appeared on my desk. It seems Magic has plans for you.' Urxluk said slowly, as if to convince himself of the truth too. Harry stared at him.

'You know that chat we had, about not dropping important information on me right after I've had a shock?' Harry said testily. Jeremy glanced between the two angry faces and clapped his hands.

'Let's move onto the business aspects shall we? Ok! Harry, we really need to go over all these properties and visit them as soon as we can…'

Harry groaned and slumped back into his seat. It was going to be another long meeting.

* * *

Boy and owl sat on a park bench, late at night. Very few muggles were around, so Harry had no problem with his familiar being on his shoulder. _How do I even know she's my familiar?_ Harry frowned as he thought over it, until Hedwig nipped his ear and glared at him in response to his unspoken question. Harry chuckled. _I guess that answers that question. Hedwig says so._ Harry resumed looking over the list of properties he had accumulated by being himself. He had managed to get it condensed into this list:

Godric Hollow #7  
Potter Villa, ? – France?  
Potter Manor, Kent  
Grimauld place, London  
Cliffs peak, Plymouth  
Starlit Hideaway, Hawaii  
The Hole, Dublin  
Peverell Castle, ?  
Camelot castle, ?  
Arthurs retreat, ?  
West + North wing of Hogwarts  
Godrics hollow #?  
Gardens and greenhouse of Hogwarts  
Hufflepuff Gardens, ? – Italy?

Harry scowled at the list. There were far too many properties on there – he didn't even need that many! He was happy with his little inn room! The rational part of his brain reminded him he'd appreciate the choice when he was older, and needed somewhere to live, but a thte present he was just a boy, with an owl, and a charms book to read.

Mind made up of his next course of action, Harry stuffed his list back into his pocket and made his way to his room. The properties and duties could wait; he had a book to read.

* * *

 **AN: Hi! Sorry for the long wait, I had a little trouble picking up the story line. I've got a rough idea of what's going on in the next few chapters, soooo yeah! Maybe I'll update sooner!**

 **I've also decided that my chapters will be between 1500 - 2500 words, else the grammar with become more awful than it is.**

 **Actually, if anyone spots a mistake of any kind could you tell me?**

 **Ciao ;)**


	8. Chapter 8

All too soon it was the week before the school term started. Diagon Alley was packed with families of all sorts of shapes and sizes, Welsh accents mingling with cockney drawls, mothers frantically chasing after hyperactive sons, parents with as much childlike wonder on their faces as their children – and the sneers of the aristocrats that looked down on them.

Harry frowned from behind his double-scoop-strawberry-cream-swirl-sundae.

"If the purebloods hate the muggleborns so much, why don't they shop elsewhere?" Harry asked Florean, the ice-cream parlor owner and confident of the irritable preteen. He received a chuckle in response.

"Well darling, all the shops worth buying from are along here _somewhere_. As Hogwarts accepts students from all over the UK, it only asks for equipment that can be bought from the main section of the alley – the bespoke alleys, or tailored alleys, must be found through magic, trickery or bribery, and are where you find all the high end stuff – much more to your standards I'd assume" Florean left Harry by the window with a wink, weaving through his crowded shop. Harry scowled at the allusion to his monetary values. Although at first glance over his papers it seemed like he was wealthy, Jeremy and Urxluk and explained that a great deal of his wealth had been used by the ministry to set up businesses and departments, and trying to remove anything would endanger the economy – or something to that effect. Harry had found Urxluk had a habit of repeating points over, and whilst he respected the goblin he was no teacher. harry had ranted abut this to Florean over many an ice cream the past month, much to the owners amusment.

Harry sighed as someone fell over the cobblestoned path again. It seemed like he was cursed: every time he made to get up, disaster struck and the crowd would swell again, making it impossible to leave the shop. He would wait until the crowd died down a little before setting out for his final few items: a trunk, a wand and his books.

* * *

Harry exited _Golding's Gear_ once again with a grin on his face. Having a great deal of money made him a slightly less frugal and he'd decided to splurge a little – a trunk that could fit an entire wardrobe, bookcase and store a potion equipment? He'd be crazy not to buy it. He went for all the same conveniece charms as before, but opted for a customizable trunk – he could charm any design onto the outside without disrupting the charms that made it work. He didn't fully understand the concept but was willing to go along with it for the time being.

After popping into _Ee_ _ylops Owl Emporium_ to pick up treats for Hedwig he entered Flourish and Blotts, a small bubble of excitement building in his chest. Pushing past a tall, bushy haired girl, eyes drawn to the stack of books, a gleeful grin unfurled across Harry's face. _This was going to be fun._

* * *

4 hours, 3 exhausted shopping assistants and one emptied money bag later, Harry collapsed onto his bed in a huff. Hedwig hooted from her perch.

"I know girl, I know!" Harry said with as much energy as he could. "I haven't even started school yet and I bought half the bloomin' shop!" he tried to sound ashamed of himself, but couldn't quite keep the excitement out of his voice. Hedwig rolled her eyes.

 _At least I didn't need to buy any history or political books,_ Harry mused as he watched his owl swoop out the window. _Given that Urxluk probably gave me every book in existence on those topics._ Harry grinned again as he glanced over the towers of books hidden in his bag.

"One more week" he whispered into now empty room. "One more week until I'm where I belong."

* * *

The morning was cloudy and cold. Harry woke with a groan. He had agreed to one more meeting with Urxluk (see: lesson) and a brief overview of his alliances with Jeremy. Now that it was the morning of the final meetings, all Harry wanted to do was lie in bed and sleep; he had a dull headache at the back of his head. He consoled himself with the fact he'd get fantastic food – after growing up with the Durselys, he would never turned down a decent meal again.

"Hey Urxy!" Harry greeted the scowling goblin cheerfully. If anything, his scowl became more pronounced.

"If I were another goblin, I could have you fined for that insult." He growled, but the glint in his eye let Harry know he was joking. _I think._ Harry shrugged.

"So what's on the agenda today, then?" Harry clapped his hands together, his energy drawn from the knowledge this was the last of these tedious lessons. Urxluk lifted an eyebrow.

"Shall we re-cap everything we've done this month?" Harry groaned and leant back in his chair.

"Ok, so: first we went over the different Houses and what being Named meant, then we went over my accounts for like, _ages_ , then… oh positions within the human ministry of magic, how goblin, centaur and vampire councils worked and the significance of seasonal changes. Last week we had a 'brief' overview of how the money system here works, but I didn't quite understand." Harry admitted, but Urxluk only nodded.

"Well remembered Harry. Frankly, you'll only need to truly understand how the monetary system works if you wish to study accounting or become an investor later on – but, you are only a child: learning magic should be your top priority. You do promise to study hard at Hogwarts, don't you?" Harry started at the intense look in Urxluk's eyes.

"What? Of course! I love magic!" Harry said defensively. Urxluk held his gaze then nodded.

"I see. Well we best be getting on with our lesson today and I'll keep it brief: the importance of Elves, most significantly House Elves. Ditsy!" at Urxluk's barking command, a tiny figure popped into the room. Harry jumped.

"Mista Urx-luk called Ditsy?" it squeaked politely at him. Harry stared. It was about a head shorter than the goblin, and much thinner. It appeared to be wearing a white blanket, and had unusually large eyes and ears. All in all, it looked to be a misshapen thing that had undeniable charm, and Harry had to stop himself cooing over it.

"Ditsy here is a House Elf. Although your wizarding lot would like to deny it, your entire society relies on the elves willingness to do all the hard work. They do claim to enjoy the work though," Urxluk grumbled at Ditsy's mortified look.

"Nah Mista Urx-luk! We'z like ta work! I'z be liken to make food for tha' small boy, he'z be seemin' to like it." She said defensively. It took a moment for Harry to register what she had said.

"Oh! It's you has been cooking?" Ditsy nodded hesitantly. Harry beamed at the tiny creature. "Everything has been lovely! You're such a fantastic cook! Please, you have to give me your recipie for – what was it? Treacle tart!" Ditsy had been smiling up until that last bit.

"Does… does tha masta not wan' Ditsy to be makin' it no more?" she said tearfully. Harry opened his mouth in horror to deny this, but Urxluk quietly asked her to leave. Urxluk himself then stood up and began to gather his papers.

"Harry, it reflects well on you that you complimented her; not all wizards would have done so. But something you must remember: never try to take an elves job. They may not seem it, but they can be a fierce race when they feel their livelihoods are being threatened. Now, I think I've taken up enough of you time. Remember what I've taught you, and work hard at school. Oh and Harry?" the goblin paused as he left the room. Harry looked up at the person who had singlehandedly made the transition into a strange new world easier than he could have imagined. "Enjoy yourself, but be careful who you trust." With that cryptic statement, the goblin left, leaving Harry to show himself out.

* * *

Several hours later, Harry was making his way down to his room from the Greengrass office. Jeremy had taken the liberty of explaining just what an 'Alliance' meant.

*2 HOURS EALRIER*

" _So Harry! Excited about Hogwarts next week?" Jeremy greeted Harry with a grin and he flopped down into an armchair by the fireplace._

" _Yep, cannot wait! So what did you want to talk about J?" Harry asked with a yawn. He wanted to spend his last few days in Diagon staring at brooms and exploring the Alley. Jeremy chuckled and started to pace slowly in front of the fire._

" _Well, in the last two weeks we've been over how you should handle your money – I'll be investing little amounts from the Potter vault here and there to keep it active, all others remain dormant until you are 14 – and how to handle yourself in polite company." Harry pulled a face. "I know, I know. But leading on from that, we'll be going over your Alliances. An Alliance between a house means you'll back that house in times of crisis: whether that be a war, an internal dispute or financial trouble. A Family can have Oppositions, which are a little more in depth but thankfully you've managed to avoid any of them. I've listed all of your Houses that have Alliances you need to honour- that means act on," he quickly added, seeing Harry's confused expression._

" _Here's the sheet. Learn it well_ before _you get onto the train as you'll need to greet any other Heirs with a formal greeting. The rings should supply you with the correct one." Harry started blankly at the expectant man and simply nodded._ Yeah, sure. The rings will guide me, _he thought sarcastically but tucked the sheet away into one of his pockets._

" _Well Harry, it's been a pleasure. I'll keep in touch via owl, so look out for Terra a few days after school starts, alright?" Harry stood up and shook his hand._

" _Thanks Jeremy. Really, I do appreciate your help." Jeremy grinned._

" _Well, that is what you pay me for, isn't it?" His laughter followed Harry out onto the street._

*PRESENT*

Harry sighed as he sat down onto his bed, Hedwig quickly settling down next to him.

"This is all a bit much," he said finally. "I mean, I feel like I'm about to wake up from a particularly vivid dream any minute now." Hedwig hooted softly at him and rubbed her head under his palm. "I know girl, I know it has been a huge shift to my world and I can't possibly cope with everything all at once," he said softly "I just feel like I'm missing something." Harry waved his hand gently, and all papers, books and clothes scattered around the room sorted themselves neatly into the trunk Harry had made look navy blue. He didn't notice the colour change.

"I just feel… maybe I don't belong." Harry struggled to articulate the feeling of oddness he felt. "Like I'm missing my tongue, or a finger – it's not a big difference, but it's there." Hedwig simply pecked at his hand and flew around the room. Harry cracked a smile. "You know best then, Hedwig. I'll sleep it off." Harry lay down under the covers as Hedwig settled onto her perch to watch her Familiar sleep.

For three whole days.

* * *

 **AN: ... hi? sorry for the month long absence, but I have more of a concrete plan now so hopefully I'll be able to work on a fortnight schedule.**

 **I say that, but we all kno no author sticks to their schedule.**

 **As an apology, I'll put up a poll: what house should Harry be in? I think he could be in any, but the choice will change how the fic develops (Slytherin = slightly more political, Ravenclaw = more about the theory and learning of magic, Hufflepuff = social changes and friendship, Gryffindor = radical social changes and a touch of politics) I mean it'll develop in pretty much the same way, but Harry's focus and friendships will change depending on house.**

 **As always, I haven't got a beta so any grammatical errors or clumsy sentences are my own fault: please point them out!**


	9. Chapter 9

It was unusually warm, the early hours of September 1st. As any true Brit knows, summer doesn't really start until August ends, which is irritating for students as they spend all of September wishing it had been this warm when they had the time off. But such is life.

The sun had just started to rise when Hedwig flew quietly back into Harry's rented room, a dead mouse clutched between her claws. She gave a soft hoot, as if too announce her presence but received no reply. The owl rolled her eyes. Honestly, her human was simply a mess. Dropping her prey, she flew over and nibbled at Harry's ears. Enough was enough, her human had to have had enough rest by now.

Harry slowly began to wake up, his head feeling groggy – the sort of dizziness one experiences after having a spectacularly unhelpful nap. He groaned as he sat up, head in hands, and lazily cast a tempus charm. He glanced to the right, checking the time.  
And checked it again.

'Hedwig,' Harry said hoarsely, 'was I asleep… for 3 days?' Hedwig gave a noise of affirmation before happily eating her prey. All she had to do now was eat, and then she could sleep until tomorrow night. Her work was done.

Harry jumped out of bed with a yelp, and frantically started throwing things into his trunk. _What was that long sleep about?_ Harry thought as he stuffed a pair of pants into the drawers in his trunk. Thankfully, it was mostly full with just a few ( _see:many_ ) books scattered around and generic items here and there. Harry ran around his room, frantically waving his arms to try and float everything inside his trunk, as well as trying to get ready himself. _Crap!_ Harry thought, as one over-zealous wave sent a pair of socks flying through a glass window _I still need a wand!_

* * *

Harry arrived outside the wandmaker's shop, Ollivanders, with a wary look. It luckily opened at 7AM, so he would have plenty of time to get his wand, breakfast and catch his train. Suddenly nervous, Harry began patting down his pockets searching for his ticket. Just as he found it, a voice sounded out onto the practically dead street:  
"Are you going to just stand there, or come in?" Harry froze momentarily, picked up his trunk and owl and entered the dusty shop.

"Good morning, my lord." A quiet voice came from the shadows.

"Oh, um, good morning, mister… um"  
"Ollivander, my lord." The wand-maker stepped out of the shadows and extended one, pale bony arm for harry to shake.  
"Right.. of course Mr Ollivander." Harry slowly nodded, nto breaking eye contact with the mans beady black eyes. "I've um, come for my wand."

Ollivander smiled, _why do all wizarding folks smile in such a weird way?_ , and motioned Harry further into the shop. Harry followed the man a a little further before he was stopped.

"I was expecting you much sooner, my lord." Ollivander said causally as a tape began measuring Harry's various limb lengths. "I was beginning to fear you had … forgotten." Harry, not wanting to admit he overslept ( _by a longshot_ ) shrugged.  
"I just wanted to save my wand to last" he simply said. Ollivander nodded.

"I see. Well," he snapped his fingers and the tape dropped limply to the floor, "let's get started, shall we?"

* * *

2 hours later, a rather grumpy Harry set yet another failed wand down. "Do you have any wands I can use?" He asked Ollivander. "I do have a train to catch you know…"

Ollivander nodded, his face flushed. "Yes, yes I know! But this is so exciting, I've not had a tricky customer like you for quite some time! Not even the holly wand matched, how curious, how about the yew? No, no that won't work…." Ollivander trailed off, clearly lost in thought as he wandered through the many shelves of his shop. Harry huffed and slumped on his chair. _I'm going to be here forever_ he thought morosely. It seemed that aspects of his magic would respond to certain woods, while other aspects would fight against the core. And then, if his magic relunctantly agreed with a wand one of his rings would fight it. Harry held up his hand with the rings on and glared at it.

"You lot better agree sooner or later, else I'll never be able to learn magic!" He scolded his rings. The Pendragon and Gryffindor rings tightened in apparent indignation while the Hufflepuff and Potter rings buzzed as if laughing.

"Ah, here we are!" Harry jumped. Ollivander was standing in front of him, holding an old copper box. "This was one of my experimental wands I made, back when I was a wand apprentice myself. Ah yes, the good old days…" his voice trailed off as harry opened the lid to reveal a twisted branch, with lines of some metal intricately woven into the wood. Harry picked it up and immediately felt a warm rush flow thorugh him. He suddenly felt, light, as if weightless, as if he had suddenly grown several feet, as if he could do anything.

"I think this is the one, Mr Ollivander" Harry said faintly. Ollivander nodded slowly, his eyes narrowed, perhaps with awe, perhaps with suspicsion.  
"I agree, my Lord. That'll be 10 galleons." Harry gave the man a quizzical look.  
"I thought the standard Hogwarts price was 7 galleons?" he asked. Ollivander looked down, and sighed.  
"It is, but that is no standard wand." Harry waited. Ollivander finally looked up and met Harry's eye. "That is an elder wood wand, fused by molten rock with holly and has a double core – a unicorn's tear and phoenix feather. Not only are such bonds rare, they're near impossible to make – which is why I did it," he explained to Harry's confused look, "To prove to my master I could work with unknown materials. He didn't even tell me what the bonding agent was, just told me to use it." Ollivander paused examining the wand thoughtfully.  
"Elder wood with holly, a powerful and temperamental pair. You should be careful of how you care for it. As for the core…. Well. I don't want to make assumptions. 10 galleons, please."

Harry left the shop slightly overwhelmed. _Figures I'd have an odd wand to go with this ridiculous experience._ He half wanted to go tell Urxluk about his new wand, but thought _best leave for a letter once I'm at Hogwarts, I don't want to interrupt his day_ and set off to Kings Cross Station.

* * *

Harry sipped at his tea, people watching. _Bet she's off to visit her daughter, or something_ Harry thought distantly, as he sat on a bench waiting for the clock to pass 10:50. According to one version of _Hogwarts: A History_ the gate to the train from the muggle world didn't open until 10 minutes before it was due to leave for safety reasons. Later editions disclaimed this fact, or ignored it altogether, but Harry wanted to play it safe. The time now 10:51, Harry put a lid back on his cup, took a deep breath, and began walking confidently forward. One of the books he had read for muggles said to run towards the 10th platform wall in order to not get stuck. Harry didn't like running, and decided it was much for seemly to walk briskly into the wall.

He still held his breath as he walked through.

Once on the other side, Harry was assaulted by such a vibrant array for loud noises and colours he had to take a moment to steady himself. Cats weaved in and out of legs, small families huddled together, men and women in long robes standing haughtily contrasting the plainly dressed muggleborns who looked frankly terrified. Harry empathised, but hoisted his trunk in one hand and bird cage in another. "Let's go, Hedwig," Harry muttered to his (rudely awakened) owl.

* * *

Harry had just settled into a rather narrow yet comfortable compartment, book up and feet up, when the door was slammed open. Two tall figures stumbled into the compartment and shut the door and curtain breathlessly.

"Do you think he saw us?" One said fearfully.  
"Nah," the other panted, "think he was looking the other way BLIMEY my back hurts!" he said stretching his back. The first figure at this point noticed Harry's wide eyed face staring at them.  
"Erm, Forge…" he nudged his stretching companion, who also noticed the young boy.  
"Oh! Alright kid? Um, do us a favour will you? If some ginger kid comes in, you didn't see us, ok?" Harry started a little more, then nodded. The person grinned. "Solid. If you ever need a hand, look for the Weasley Twins in Gryffindor – we're not hard to find." At this 'Forge' turned to his (apparent) twin. "Come'on Gred, Ron's probably run off by now, we can get our stuff." 'Gred' nodded and they both left Harry on his own again.

 _Weasley, huh? Aren't one of my houses connected to them in some way?_ Harry wondered, but none of his rings glowed, so Harry assumed it wasn't important.

* * *

Much later into some YA novel, Harry's compartment opened once again. A short ginger boy peered in.  
"Hi, um… sorry to bother you, but my brothers kicked me out. Can I sit here?" He asked nervously. Harry nodded, only half paying attention. The boy mumbled a thanks and sat down. He looked as if he wanted to say something, but just as he opened his mouth another person walked in and sat in a huff. Harry's Black ring suddenly squeezed, causing him to sit up straight.

"May Magic bless our first meet, Ally Heir Removed Greengrass" Harry intoned, the words coming from nowhere. The girl's eyebrows rose slightly, and she took his pro-offered hand cautiously. "May Magic bless our first meet, Ally…" Her eyes widened in shock, and drew in a sharp breath. "ally Line Heir Potter...and ally Heir Balck" she finished shaking his hand. Harry blinked slightly, shaking the magic from his headas he withdrew his hand.

"That was odd, I've not done that before. You can just call me Harry. And you are?" the girl continued to look at him with a dazed expression.  
"Daphne… um Daphne Greengrass…" she trailed off. Harry waited for her to continue, but as nothing was forthcoming he turned to the boy.

"Sorry about that, I would have introduced myself earlier but I was distracted by my book!" He laughed slightly, but the other boy was also staring at him in shock. Harry sighed. "Is this going to be the normal reaction?" he asked, somewhat rhetorically.

"Yes." Daphne replied instantly, offering a slight grin. "You are the boy-who lived, after all." Harry looked at her strangely.

"Are… are you making fun of me?" He asked indignantly. "We've just met!" Daphne smiled fully, and didn't reply. Harry rolled his eyes and turned back to the other boy. "Again, sorry. I'm Harry, Harry Potter, and you are?" The boy started at him with his mouth agape.

Silence fell for a moment before the boy composed himself and swallowed.

"Um, I'm Ron Weasley" his eyes flicked towards Daphne but when she didn't react he continued "bloody hell are you really Harry Potter?" Ron asked excitedly. Harry blinked. _I did say I was didn't I?_ he thought before nodding. Ron stared at him awe-struck, but didn't say anything else.

"Well," Daphne said just to fill the silence, "What house do we all think we'll be in?" Ron jerked out of his hero gaze and looked at her.

"Gryffindor, obviously! Where… all my brothers went…" He trailed off slightly. "I want to be there… but it's a lot to live up to, you know?" he said, glancing between the other two. Daphne eyed him thoughtfully, before nodding.

"I know what you mean. I'm expected to go into Slytherin, if I get put in any other house I might be disowned – but imagine being a Hufflepuff!" She shuddered. Ron had sneered slightly at the mention of Slytherin, but nodded in agreement with Daphnes statement.

Harry observed them both, before turning to the window.

"Does it matter?" He asked. The two looked at him incredulously.

"Of course it matters!" Ron said loudly, leaning out of his seat. "Your house is your family! Wouldn't you be mad if you got put with the slimy snakes?" he lowered back down onto his seat, glancing at Daphne. "erm, no offence…" he said sheepishly. Daphne gave him a cold look, but nodded slightly.

"He has a point though, Harry. In Wizarding Britain, which house you were in means a great deal." She spoke calmly as Ron nodded in agreement, but Harry continued to look out of the window.

"I suppose in that case…" he sighed and turned to face them. "I still don't care." The two purebloods stared at him.

"You're barmy." Ron said quietly. Daphne dipped her head in agreement, looking at Harry with calculating eyes. Harry looked at both and shrugged.

"Guess I have different priorities. Now, I don't know about you, but I'm starving." He jumped up and went out to buy as many sweets as he could stand. Daphne's gaze met Ron's.

"I would like to get on with you, Weasley." She said calmly. Ron looked at her in surprise "however if you insist on insulting my house I'm afraid this won't work out. Please refrain from such comments in the future, else… well. I think you know." Ron looked away, his cheeks flushed. He bobbed his head, and mumbled another apology. Daphne looked at him, before turning away from him.

"Potter's a bitdifferent than expected, isn't he?" she said causally. Ron looked up again, relieved to talk about something else.

"Yeah, he is a bit," Ron said, taking out his corned beef sandwiches. "I thought he'd be more… y'know" Ron gestured vaguely with his arm. Daphne stared at him, mouth twitching slightly. Ron glanced at her and his sandwich. "Oh, um, my mum packed me a lunch… corned beef." His face fell slightly. "You want one?" he tried to say cheerfully. Daphne tried to keep her face impassive but couldn't quite repress her smile.

"No thank you. You realize you've managed to get food on your face and you haven't even taken a bite?" Ron went pink and went to wipe his face but ended up rubbing his sandwich on his face. He scowled at the now giggling Daphne.

"You did that on purpose!" he accused the giggling girl, who nodded between laughs.

"Of course! What did you expect from a 'slimy snake'?" she teased him. Ron began to smile too, just as Harry came back, arms laden with an assortment of food and face stuffed with pastries.

"wha'd ah miss?" he mumbled through the food. Daphne and Ron took one look before bending over laughing. Harry rolled his eyes.

 _Honestly, wizards._

* * *

 **Before anyone says anything, the scene with Ron isn't totally OOC because I have done something similar.**

 **So there.**

 **Me: I'm going to upload about 1000 words every few weeks over a year!**  
 **Inner me: upload a ridculous amount 9 months after last uploading to stress yourself out over instead of doing important revision and work**  
 **Me: why on earth would I do that**  
 **Inner me: you gotta**  
 **Me: \\( _ )/ damn u right**


	10. Chapter 10

The Hogwarts express made its way through the falling dusk. Even the older students, sixth and seventh years, felt a spark of excitement as the train began to slow in the approach to the station. The atmosphere in Harry's compartment was quite different.

"Ha! Take that!" Ron cried as he won yet another game of exploding snap. Daphne handed her stack of every flavoured beans with a sour expression and Harry dug out a chocolate frog to give. The seats were strewn with sweet wrappers and discarded layers, and the remnants of many games of wizarding chess and gobstones. All in all, a rather fun introduction to his peers, Harry thought. Daphne glanced at her watch, and gasped.  
"Is that the time already?! Quick, get into your robes!" She rushed out to get changed in the loos and slammed the door shut. Ron rolled her eyes.  
"She's right weird isn't she?" Harry gave a noise of affirmation as he began to pull his robes on.

* * *

Harry and Ron stumbled out onto the platform and put their trunks down in the section labelled 'TRUNKS'. "Why don't we take them up ourselves?" Harry asked Ron, this was not addressed in Hogwarts: A history. Ron shrugged.  
"Dunno mate, never really thought about it. Where do you think we go kow?" he asked looking around. Harry, annoyed, opened his mouth to respond _how am I supposed to know_ when a loud voice cut through the hubble.  
"Firs' years, firs' years, follow me!" A large figure towered over the platform, motioning the smaller students to the far end of the platform. Ron and Harry shared a glance before slowly making their way down the bustling platform. A beaming face peered at from under a tangled beard, and Harry felt oddly safe next to the imposing figure. "Name's Rubeus Hagrid, I'm the keeper of the keys here at Hogwarts. You lot can call me Hagrid" The man introduced himself with a gentle smile. Several of the gathered first years smiled nervously back and muttered a greeting. Ron leaned over to Harry.  
"He's friends with my parents, I think. Makes really bad food but he's harmless." Harry took in the information with a nod, and followed the man off the platform.

Harry and Ron managed to get into a boat relatively quickly, and found themselves with two other boys – a dark skinned, scowling boy and a mousey haired, excitable boy who introduced himself as Ernie MacMillan. As soon as he had sat down Harry's rings had started to hum with energy, and he felt himself speaking without realising it. _Here we go again…_

"May Magic Bless our first meet, Ally Heir Removed Macmillan." Harry said formally and held his hand out to shake. Ernie look bemused as he shook Harry's hand, Ron looked put out and the fourth boy looked… annoyed. Annoyed and bored.

"um.. right yes, May Magic bless our first meet… ah ally Line Heir Potter" Ernie stumbled through, taken off guard. As soon as their hands shook Harry turned to face the other boy.

"May Magic bless our first meet, Ally Heir Zabini." Harry said once again, his mind racing. He hadn't wanted to reveal all of his titles at once, but his magic seemed to be forcing him to introduce himself to all his allies. _What if someone figures out I'm the last of the Pendragons? Why didn't I have to do this to Ron? Isn't his family a pureblood family?_ Harry thought quickly as he held his arm out. The Zabini heir gave Harry a measured look before taking his hand.

"May Magic bless our first meet… my Ally." Zabini said before dropping Harry's hand and turning to face out of the boat. The other three stared at him as the boats began to move.

"Guess everyone finally got on… oh, would you mind calling me Harry?" Harry asked the other two heirs, and relaxed as they both agreed. A few moments later, Ernie tried to speak but Zabini sushed him. Nonpulssed, Ernie opened his mouth, angrily this time, but Harry gave him a look. Ernie turned to see what was causing such a reaction and saw for the first time –

Hogwarts, a simultaneous imposing and mighty crater in the Scottish highlands. Tall towers that spiralled into the night, softly illuminated by orange glows at random points in the broken and uneven wall. The lake itself wrapped around the base of the castle, with a forest acting as a coat for the back of the castle. Numerous ridges and bridges were scattered throughout, making the castle seem huge in the inky night. To the unobservant eye, it would seem that Hogwarts was fixed being, but to Harry the walls seemed to pulse with magical energy, a heartbeat only just picking up. He could see a faint shimmer that surrounded the entire castle, a beautiful coat to keep the students safe. At once he felt a great rush of love for a castle he had never seen before, had only just learnt about, and knew in a secret part of his heart he would never grow to hate or to be bored with this place. It would become his home.

* * *

All too soon for Harry's liking, the boats pulled into a bay under the castle. The man named Hagrid lead them to a small waiting room where ( _I count about)_ 25 students they waited for something to happen. Less than a few seconds passed before a tall, pinched woman strode in. Despite her clear old age, she gave an aura of not one you wanted to mess with. This did not go unnoticed, and almost everyone stood a little straighter. A slight smile played on the woman's lips as she introduced herself.

"Good evening, boys and girls. My name is Professor McGonagall, and I am the Deputy Headmistress, Head of Gryffindor house and Transifguration teacher. In a few moments, you will all be taken into the Great Hall to be sorted into a house that best suits you. The method of sorting is best left a secret, and we ask you partake in the tradition of not telling younger siblings of the method – I am sure some of you here know what I mean." Ron nodded slightly, as did a few other grinning faces. "You after being sorted sit at the correct table for feasts and other distinguished events. The tables are as such: Slytherin, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff and Gryffindor. Your house will become your family. Do well, and you earn points for your house, likewise if you misbehave you lose points. A house cup is awarded at the end of each year to the house with the highest number of points; do try to be in the winning house." She gave the students a few minutes to digest all the information. "Now, I will be back shortly to take you to be sorted. In the meantime, please try to organise yourselves." With a pointed look at the soot left on Ron's nose and the messiness of Harry's hair before sweeping out of the room. Almost at once, the room broke into excited chatter.

"Did you see? That was the famous McGonagall that scared my dad so much-"  
"Oh no I will never remember which order the tables were in what was it again Slytherin, Hufflepuff-"  
"As if Slytherin would be next to _Hufflepuf_ don't be silly-"  
"Does my hair look ok? I think I'm going to re-do it."  
"No no you look lovely, my names Lavender by the way-"

Little conversations sprung up around the room, as Daphne made her way over to the other two. "So," she asked "nervous?" Ron, clearly nervous, shook his head.

"Nah, I'm not nervous," he said with a pale face. "why would I be nervous? I mean, it'sjustthatFredandGeorgesaidwehavetofighttrollsHarryIdon'twanttofightatroll- " Harry grinned and nudged Ron's shoulder.

"Calm down, I'm sure it won't be that bad!" Harry tried to comfort Ron but seemed to be having no luck. "Look, they won't make any first year fight a _troll_ come'on…" Harry trailed off when he realised that Daphne had suddenly gone very tense beside him. "Daphne are you ok?" he asked concerned before realising someone else wanted his attention. His rings became to vibrate again, but it felt different this time. Whereas before, when all the rings hummed in harmony with his magic, now it felt as though they themselves were making him talk to this person against their will. _It must be bad,_ Harry thought warily, _if the unconscious rings are being forced to force me to do something against their conscious._

"May Magic bless this meet, Heir Malfoy." Harry said formally, but bowed his head instead of offering his hand. The blond boy raised his eyebrows and looked at Harry appraisingly, but eventually bowed his head in return.

"May Magic bless this meet… Potter." The Malfoy heir turned and walked to the other side of the small room without further word. Daphne's face morphed into shock and turned to Harry, amidst the mutters that sprung up around the room about what had just occurred. Even if they couldn't see the shimmers of magic like Harry could, they could still feel the way the atmosphere changed as the two exchanged words.

"I can't believe he did that!" she whispered with her arms crossed. Harry looked at her amusedly. "Don't look at me like that, I knew he wouldn't play nice but I assumed he would still remain polite." She fumed to herself and Harry rolled his eyes. _Honestly. Jeremy warned me there would be a great deal of 'politicing' and ridiculousness, but I haven't even been here an hour…_ Harry thought sadly to himself. He had wanted to start off on a better foot, but _what's passed is passed, now onwards to the future._

It was at this point McGonagall strode back into the room. She lifted an eyebrow at the clear mood change, and glanced knowingly at Harry ( _how does she know it's my fault? She doesn't even know me!)_ before beckoning the children to follow her.

* * *

As they entered the Great Hall, all thoughts went straight out of Harry's head as he and the other first years took in the splendour of the massive room. 4 long benches filled the main room, with a shorter but no less impressive bench was placed on a platform and held the teachers. The walls were adorned with different banners from the houses, with torches placed intermediately between them. But what really took centre stage was the ceiling. It seemed to be charmed to show the sky, with small candles floating haphazardly to create the effect of dining outside. One could almost believe it were the real sky, as if there were no roof but the hall really did open to the heavens. Harry half wanted to believe that, as many of his peers did if he went by their awed chatter, but he could see the tell-tale slight shimmer of magic that encased the ceiling. _Wait, since when could I see magic?_ Harry thought, breaking out of his daze. He shook his head slightly. _Not important right now._ The first years were positioned in front of a stool, which had a tattered old hat on. Harry suppressed a smirk. It looked like a novelty item worn on Halloween, and was just as shocked as everyone when the top of the hat lifted from the brim and began to sing.

' _Oh you may not think I'm pretty,_  
 _But don't judge on what you see,_  
 _I'll eat myself if you can find_  
 _A smarter hat than me._

 _You can keep your bowlers black,  
Your top hats sleek and tall,  
For I'm the Hogwarts Sorting Hat_  
 _And I can cap them all._

 _There's nothing hidden in your head_  
 _The Sorting Hat can't see,_  
 _So try me on and I will tell you_  
 _Where you ought to be._

 _You might belong in Gryffindor,_  
 _Where dwell the brave at heart,_  
 _Their daring, nerve, and chivalry_  
 _Set Gryffindors apart;_

 _You might belong in Hufflepuff,  
Where they are just and loyal,_  
 _Those patient Hufflepuffs are true_  
 _And unafraid of toil;_

 _Or yet in wise old Ravenclaw,  
if you've a ready mind,_  
 _Where those of wit and learning,_  
 _Will always find their kind;_

 _Or perhaps in Slytherin  
You'll make your real friends,_  
 _Those cunning folks use any means_  
 _To achieve their ends._

 _So put me on! Don't be afraid!_  
 _And don't get in a flap!_  
 _You're in safe hands (though I have none)_  
 _For I'm a Thinking Cap'_

The Great Hall burst into applause, and Ron started to laugh. "A hat?! We just have to try on a hat! I'm going to kill Fred and George!" he said gleefully to Harry as the noise settled down. McGonagall stepped forward and began to call names.

Slowly, the line began to dwindle. Some names took longer to be decided on (one Hermione Granger took 4 minutes to be put in Gryffindor and a timid looking Neville Longbottom took 6 minutes to be put in Gryffindor) and some names where sorted instantly (notably Ernie Macmillan for Hufflepuff and Draco Malfoy for Slytherin), but eventually it came down to –

"Harry Potter!" as Harry walked to the stool he heard mutters arise in the crowd.

"Did she say-"  
"She did didn't she"  
"I thought he was going to start next year?"  
"He looks like he should-"  
"Is it really him?"

Harry took a deep breath, and pulled the hat over his head.

HELLO. Said a voice from seemingly no-where.  
 _Hello._ Harry responded. _What should I call you?  
_ YOU CAN CALL ME ALISTAIR, IF YOU WISH.  
 _Thank you, Alistair. Which house would you put me in?_  
LET'S SEE, SHALL WE… WELL. LOYAL TO A FAULT, BUT ONLY WHEN YOU WANT TO BE, AH A THRIST FOR KNOWLEDGE, GOOD… BUT ONLY FOR THING YOU CARE ABOUT. INTERESTING. WILLING TO MANIPULATE INTO GETTING YOUR WAY, BUT WOULD RATHER NOT. A CUNNING MIND, OVERALL. WELL, IT SEEMS OBVIOUS TO ME, BUT WHICH WOULD YOU LIKE? The hat asked, seemingly curious.  
 _I would like Gryffindor, if you don't mind._ Harry responded politely. The hat fell silent.  
REALLY? WELL THEN. IN THAT CASE, IT BETTER BE -

* * *

 **A cliffhanger because although I had planned to add more, it would make the chapter ridiculously long so I've split it into two.**

 **Hope you enjoyed, review if you want or don't live your best life.**

 **As always any grammar mistakes are mine, and the sorting hat song is obvs not mine.**

 **Happy holidays! xox ^-^**


	11. Sorry pals

Hullo

If you couldn't tell, from my suspicious absence, this fic has been abandoned.

I /did/ have a plan for it, all the way up to year 6! Wow! Go me!

*sarcastic applause*

Unfortunately, that required writing, and dedicating time to writing. Neither were/are things I have time for bcuz 1) life 2) I cbb.

If you're /really/ into this (why) I can send you the plan. It's terrible but much funnier than anything here. :D

I would say this is up for adoption, but this is knowingly generic and kinda cringey sooo

No. do a better job please I believe in you!

Cheer,

-J


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